Catalog
10 000 Nouveaux Zaïres Leopard
| Issuer | Zaire (1971-1997) |
|---|---|
| Year | 1996 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Shape | Round |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
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| Reverse description | A leopard rendered in fine raised relief is depicted reclining at ease upon a tree branch, its spotted coat and muscular form shown in naturalistic detail, with the branch extending across the width of the field. The curved inscription WILDLIFE OF AFRICA arcs along the upper periphery. The denomination 10 000 NOUVEAUX ZAÏRES is inscribed in two lines across the lower field, separated from the central motif by the polished mirror finish of the proof surface. |
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| Reverse lettering | WILDLIFE OF AFRICA 10 000 NOUVEAUX ZAÏRES |
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| Additional information |
By 1996, Mobutu Sese Seko's government was functionally bankrupt, the Zaïrian economy destroyed by decades of kleptocracy and hyperinflation so severe that the central bank had resorted to printing banknotes with extra zeros rather than redesigning them. Large gold bullion pieces like this one were never intended for domestic circulation — they were produced for hard-currency export, effectively selling off national gold to generate foreign exchange that the collapsing nouveau zaïre could no longer attract.
Mobutu's regime fell to Laurent-Désiré Kabila's forces the following year. The nation was renamed the Democratic Republic of the Congo in May 1997.